Henry had a brief panic attack when he thought of what might have happened to his cat. But he knew from past experience that she couldn’t be caught if she didn’t want to be. And she was very efficient at raiding the neighbor’s cat dish for food, as well as making meals of the prolific rodent population. The cat would be fine.

Surveying the wreckage of the kitchen, Henry was suddenly very relieved that Coralis had accompanied them from New York. The old Wand Master had grumbled most of the way, as they traveled by subway train and bus and chartered car. But he’d insisted that they needed to do this together.

Before they’d departed Molly’s tavern, Coralis had chosen a coat very similar to his own from a closet full of strange apparel and given it to Henry. He explained that it was constructed from very special fibers and was the preferred garment of Wandmakers. And to someone who liked pockets as much as Henry, it was a dream come true.

Molly had bid them a tearful good-bye. Unaccustomed to physical displays of affection, especially from someone as pretty as Molly, Henry had blushed furiously when she’d squeezed him in a tight hug. Brianna had teased him about it for hours.

“Bahtzen bizzle!” Coralis’s shout pulled them away from the horror of the kitchen to a worse horror—their father’s study. The large immovable desk had been upended and now leaned at such an extreme angle, it looked like it should topple over. But the gaping gash it had wedged into the wall held it like a clenched fist. Every book had been ripped from the shelves, and in some cases torn in half.

“What about our rooms, Henry?” Perched in Henry’s pocket, Brianna looked up to him with moist eyes.

“No need to bother,” said Coralis grimly. “I’ve already looked. They are in no better shape than this.” He smiled cagily. “And yet, amid the rubble, the intruder missed this.” He tossed the gold nugget to Henry, who, for the first time in his life, caught something without dropping it.

Henry immediately flipped it back to Coralis. “Yikes!” He had seen what that gold was capable of doing and his mind reflexively screamed Danger!

“Relax.” Coralis pressed the nugget into Henry’s palm. “It’s quite dormant for the time being. We may need it later, so it’s best that you hold on to it for now. I also found this.” He reached inside his coat, where he had tucked a book away.

“My guidebook.” Henry frowned. Immediately after the accident, he’d put the book away, wishing he’d never set eyes upon it.